I guess I’m on a curry kick these days… making dishes with curry is exciting, I love the spice! I developed this recipe for my love of Empanadas and my love for curry and I’m bringing them with me today to a party where I’m a guest for a change. These little flaky pastry bundles filled with a creamy curry chicken and cheese mixture with a bit of spiciness are perfect for so many parties. This is a Happy New Year’s get together with friends that I’m attending with a buffet of different foods; I thought they could use a nice appetizer as people mingle when they arrive.

Ingredients

8 ounces of cream cheese, softened

3/4cup of shredded cheddar cheese

1/4 cup of spicy mango chutney

1 tablespoon yellow curry powder

1 teaspoon cumin

¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper

¼ teaspoon kosher salt

¼ teaspoon coarse black pepper

¼ cup chopped pimentos from a jar, drained

¼ cup of chopped cilantro

3 green onions, chopped

2 cups chopped, cooked chicken, make it easy and buy some precooked chicken from the market, like a rotisserie chicken

Lay out one pie crust on a board and with a 3 inch round cutter, cut 8 rounds out, and repeat with the other pie crusts. You should have 32 in total.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Place one round on a flat surface and put 1 teaspoon (a standard tea spoon, not one used for baking) of chicken filling in the middle, with a little water, brush half the pastry dough on the flat edges, fold in half over the chicken and press down the edges and with a fork, press down the edges lightly, repeat this with the remainder of all the pie crust rounds and chicken filling.

Place the empanadas on 2 silicone lined or parchment lined sheet pans.

Scramble the egg with one tablespoon of water and brush each empanada with the egg wash and sprinkle the tops with a bit of sesame seeds.

Place them in the preheated oven for 15 to 20 minutes until golden brown.